Line-up

Headliner
Sub Focus Last time in London: 1 week ago

Venue

The O2

Peninsula Sq, SE10 0DX, London, UK

www.theO2.co.uk

Capacity: 20,000

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Additional details

Doors open: 18:30

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Sub Focus biography

Nick Douwma better known by his stage name Sub Focus, is an English electronic music producer originally from Guildford in Surrey.

Despite being active as a producer since 2003, Nick began to receive attention in the industry when his early release 'X Ray' topped the UK Dance charts and charted at #60 on the single charts in 2005. He continued to produce and record after this music and his 2007 singles 'Time Warp' and 'Rock It' topped the dance charts once again with the latter managing to break into the UK top 40 at #38. Before the release of his debut album he continued to build his reputation by remixing songs from dance heavyweights such as The Prodigy, Deadmau5, Empire of the Sun and Dizzee Rascal.

His debut self titled album was released in October 2009 through RAM Records and included a number of early singles along with new material. The following two singles 'Could This Be Real' and 'Splash' both peaked just outside the top 40 singles chart at #41. In 2010, Sub Focus was a support act for Australian drum & bass band Pendulum on their UK tour to promote their third album Immersion which gained him a greater exposure. The follow up album 'Torus' charted a lot better, peaking at #1 on the UK Dance chart and #11 on the UK album charts. It featured an impressive five top forty singles including his highest chart place to date at #10 with 'Endorphins' featuring Alex Clare.

Sub Focus became a massive name on the UK festival circuit, following the success of 'Torus' he headlined the Radio 1 Dance stage at the Reading and Leeds Festivals 2013. He also put in performances at Glastonbury, Bestival, Isle Of Wight and Global Gathering that summer. The continued support of Radio 1 amassed in him headlining the first Radio 1 Xtra Live event in Bournemouth in October 2013 before embarking on his largest headline tour to date.

Live reviews

Although Sub Focus has been releasing records since 2003, he only really achieved well deserved but semi-mainstream success after his 2009 self-titled debut album was released. The English electronic music producer, known separately from his stage name as Nick Douwma, exploded on to the dance, electronic and drum and bass scene with tracks such as “Rock It / Follow the Light,” (which found its way onto the Top 40 UK singles chart) “Splash” and “Could This Be Real.” All of which are high energy, fast-paced thudding bass-ridden songs perfect for a night full of dancing.
I first saw Sub Focus at Reading Festival in 2010 in the NME tent; the perfect enclosed location to set a night-time atmosphere and to sufficiently squash the crowd into a sea of swaying and jumping dancers. Even on such a big stage at a relatively early time to perform, the entire audience never faltered in response to Sub Focus’s massive tunes. With every track, there was barely time to rest before heavy and fast beats dropped and everyone went wild. That was especially with the help of the MC constantly reminding us to “bounce, bounce, bounce” with every track – not that we needed his instructions!
More recently Sub Focus seems to have upped his game in terms of his own stage presence; relying more on his circular, sub speaker-esque lighting to create hype and ambience rather than his MCs. Plus, with his second album being named ‘Torus,’ this shape seems to be a pivotal element of Sub Focus’s independent identity or brand. This sense of identity is certainly more evident in his recent shows, one of which was a headline slot at Reading and Leeds Festival 2013, which demonstrated how his sound and Sub Focus as an artist, rather than just a producer, has developed.

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